Automatic locking slider for slide fastener



Nov. 29, 1966 H. A. COOPERBERG 3,287,780

AUTOMATIC LOCKING SLIDER FOR SLIDE FASTENER Filed March 15, 1965 INVENTOR Henry A. COOPERBERG TTORNE YS United States Patent Ofi ice 3,287,780 AUTOMATIC LOCKING SLIDER FOR SLIDE FASTENER Henry A. Cooperberg, St. Laurent, Montreal, Quebec,

Canada, assignor to Star Fasteners of Canada Ltd.,

Montreal, Quebec, Canada Filed Mar. 15, 1965, Ser. No. 439,579 3 Claims. (Cl. 24-20514) This invention relates to sliders for slider fasteners and, more particularly, to an improved automatic looking slider.

Conventional locking sliders incorporate a locking spring, a locking pin, and cap means to enclose the spring and pin. This assembly of components projects outwardly from the face of the slider and is thus extremely vulnerable to damage, especially when the slide fastener is attached to a garment and the garment undergoes cleaning, washing, pressing, or like operations. It is also necessary that the locking pin be held in a released position during the assembly of the slide [fastener and this requirement introduces additional complications.

' The present invention provides an automatically locking slider in which the locking means comprises a locking spring, locking pin, and cap means combined into a one-piece locking member. This onewpiece locking member is attached at one end to the outer face of the slider body and the locking pin portion is in the form of a locking prong which extends from the free end of the locking member into the slide channel, to lock the fastener. The pull tab of the slider incorporates a slot adjacent one end thereof. The portion between the slot and the end of the pull tab represents a lifting cam and is assembled in a U-shaped portion of the locking member to lie between the looking member and the slider body. The distance between the slot and the end of the pull tab is arranged to be'greater than the perpendicular distance between the inside surface of the U-shaped portion and the surface of the slider body, and the thickness of the pull tab is arranged to be less than the perpendicular distance between the inside surface of the U-shaped portion and the surface of the slider body. Thus when the pull tab is positioned to lie flat against the face of the slider body the cam portion will not effect the position of the locking member and the prong will project into the slide channel and the slider will be locked in this position to the fastener elements which pass therethrough. However, when the pull tab is rotated 90, to a position perpendicular to the slider body, the cam portion will lift the U-shaped portion of the locking member and the locking prong will be withdrawn from the slide channel and the slider will be free for longitudinal movement.

When the pull tab is grasped to move the slider, the locking prong will be automatically withdrawn from the slide channel and the slider will be free to be moved and, at the same time, when the pull tab is released and flicked downwardly, the locking prong will snap back into the slide channel and the slider will be automatically locked in this position on the fastener elements. It is, therefore, the main object of this invention to provide an improved slider which embodies the locking spring, locking pin and cap, in a one-piece locking member.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved slider which embodies a depression in the body thereof, and in which one end of the one-piece locking member is secured in the recess and is flush with the surface of the slider body, to reduce the over-all height 3,287,780 Patented Nov. 29, 1966 of the slider assembly, as compared with the height of a conventional slider, and to prevent any side movements of the locking relative to the slider body.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved slider in which one end of the locking member is securely locate-d in the above mentioned slider body depression by two cars which are die cast as part of the slider body and which are staked to grip the end of the locking member and also to retain the pull tab, in one simple operation. 7

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved slider in which the locking member is manrufactured from heat treated spring steel and does not embody slots, holes, or other perforations for attachment to the slider body, and is thus able to develop its maximum strength characteristics.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved slider in which the pull tab embodies a cam portion which is assembled between the locking member and the slider body and in which engagement or release of the locking prong is accomplished by movement of the pull tab.

A further object is to provide an irriproved slider which incorporates stop means built into the slider body to prevent the locking prong of the locking member from being pulled away from the slider body by the use of excessive force on the pull tab.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will be further apparent by referring to the following detailed specification and figures, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a slide fastener assembly embodying :a slider according to this invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the slider body shown in FIG. 1, before assembly of the locking member and pull tab thereto.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal longitudinal section through the slider body shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. -4 is a perspective view of the locking member.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the pull tab.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the complete slider assembly in which the pull tab is positioned to lie adjacent the surface of the slider body member.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal vertical section through the slider assembly shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view, similar to FIG. 6, but showing the pull tab rotated through to a position perpendicular to the surface of the slider body member.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal vertical section through the slider assembly shown in FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a longitudinal vertical section, similar to FIG. 7, but showing an alternative execution.

Refer now to FIG. 1 which shows a slide fastener assernbly which comprises a pair of edge tapes 11 having a plurality of spaced apart and interlocking fastener elements 12 attached to the opposed edges thereof. Slider assembly 13 is provided with a Y-shaped slide channel therethrough and is adapted to be assembled on edge tapes 11 such that longitudinal movement of slider assembly 13 will produce opening and closing of fastener elements 12 in a manner well known to those skilled in the art.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, slider body 14 comprises outer body member 15 and inner body member 16, connected together at one end, and in spaced opposed relation, by neck portion 17 to provide a substantially Y-shaped channel between the opposed outer and inner body members 15 and 16, respectively. Thus, downward opening movement of slider assembly 13 will cause edge tapes 11 and assembled slider elements 12 to pass through the centre channel 18 of the Y-shaped channel and separate, at neck portion 17, to pass outwardly through the arms 19 and 20 of the Y-shaped channel. Flanges 21 and 22 extend inwardly from outer body member 15 and inner body member 16, respectively, and serve to retain edg'etapes 11 and fastener elements 12 in the Y-s h-aped channel as slider assenrbly 13 is moved longitudinally. A first recess 23 is formed in the surface of outer body member 15 adjacent neck portion 17 and a second recess 24 is formed in the surface of outer body member 15 adjacent centre channel 18. First recess 23 extends into a deeper recess 23a at the end remote from said second recess 24. Second recess 24 extends into a slot 24a at the end remote from the first recess 23. Ears 25 are formed adjacent the longitudinal edges of first recess 23 and project outwardly from outer body member 15.

' Slider body 14 will preferably be manufactured by conventional means such as a die casting process, the complete slider body 14, including recesses 23 and 24 and cars 25, being formed in one single die casting operation.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the yieldable locking member 26 which comprises the combination of locking spring, locking pin and cap, in one unit. Locking member 26 is preferably manufactured of heat treated spring steel strip to provide maximum strength characteristics combined with resiliency. U-shaped portion 27 is formed approximately midway along the length of locking member 26 and is positioned transverse thereto. Each end of locking member 26 is bent in a direction away from U-shaped portion 27, one end being bent at approximately 90 to locking member 26 and extending toform locking prong 28, and the other end 26a being bent at approximately 25 to locking member 26.

FIG. shows a perspective view of .a pull tab 29 which includes a slot 30 positioned therethrough adjacent one end thereof.

Refer now to FIGS. 6 and 7 which show a perspective view and longitudinal section, respectively, of the slider assembly 13. Slider assembly 13 is assembled by positioning locking member 26 through slot 30 in pull tab 29, such that the portion 31 will be located in U-shaped portion 27. The locking member 26 is placed in recesses 23 and 24 such that locking prong 28 will extend through slot 24a in outer slider body and protrude into centre channel 18, and end 26a will be located in recess 23a. Bars 25 are then staked down to rigidly locate locking member 26 in slider body 14. Thus slider assembly 13 is assembled in one simple operation.

The location of locking member 26 in recesses 23 and 24 serves to rigidly locate locking member 26 and to reduce the over-all height of the slider assembly. The location of end 2611 in recess 23a serves to eliminate any s'harp corners which might otherwise catch in garments or interfere in pressing operations, etc.

The thickness of pull tab 29 is dimensioned to be less than the perpendicular distance between the inside surface of U-shaped portion 27 and the upper surface 32 of outer body member 15', thus when pull tab 29 is positioned to lie adjacent upper surface 32, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, locking prong 2-8 will extend into centre channel 18, and thus into fastener elements 12, and securely lock the slide fastener in this position.

FIGS. 8 and 9 show a perspective view and longitudinal section, respectively, similar to FIGS. 6 and 7, but in which pull tab 29 is positioned perpendicular to upper face 32 of slider body 14. The distance between the lower edge of slot 30 and end face 33 of pull tab 29, as represented by portion 31, is dimensioned to be larger than the perpendicular distance between the underside of U-shaped portion 27 and upper surface 32. Thus, when pull tab 29 is positioned, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, portion 31 will form an efiective team member and result in U-shaped portion 27 being lifted upwardly and locking prong 28 being withdrawn from centre channel 18. Slider assembly 13 will now be free to move longitudinally to fasten or unfasten elements 12.

Thus it will be seen that to operate the fastener according to this invention, it is merely necessary to grasp pull tab 29, whereby pull tab 29 will be moved to a position substantially perpendicular to upper surface 32, and locking member 26 will be released to free slider assembly 13 for operation. When the desired slider position is attained, pull tab 29 is released, and flicked downwardly, whereupon the spring characteristics of locking member 26 will urge pull tab 29 to lie against the face 32 of slider body 13 and the slider assembly will be securely locked in this position. It will be seen that, during manufacture, assembly of slider assembly 13 over edge tapes 11 and fastener elements 12 is greatly facilitated by the fact that the positioning of pull tab 29 perpendicular to slider body 14 will enable the assembly to be executed without the need for any additional assembly devices.

FIG. 10 shows a longitudinal vertical section through an alternative execution of this invention wherein pull tab 29 is positioned to lie adjacent upper surface 32, in a manner similar to FIG. 7.

In this execution yieldable locking member 34 includes a locking prong 35 which extends angul-arly downwards from U-shaped portion 27 and extends through slot 36, in slider body 14, into centre channel 18. Stop member 37 is formed on the transverse edge of slot 36, remote from first recess 23. Stop member 37 is formed in a substantially vertical position during the die-casting of the slider body and is deformed to the position shown in FIG. 10 in the same assembly operation in which cars 25 are staked downwardly.

Thus stop member 37 prevents locking prong 35 from being pulled away from slider body 14 by the use of excessive force on the pull tab. This execution is thus especially useful for heavy duty slide fastener applications, such as in overshoes, girdles, etc.

What I claim is:

1. A locking slider for slide fasteners including a slider body comprising outer and inner body members positioned in spaced relation and connected at one end by a neck portion to provide a substantially Y-shaped channel therebetween, a first rectangular recess in said outer body member over the centre channel of said Y-shaped channel, a transverse slot extending from said first recess through said outer body member, a second rectangular recess in said outer body member over said neck portion, said first and second recesses being substantially in axial alignment, ear means extending outwardly from said outer body member on each longitudinal side of said second recess, an unperforated longitudinal locking member of flat spring strip, said locking member having a substan tially U-shaped portion extending outwardly therefrom and intermediate the length thereof, the end portion of said locking member on one side of said U-slraped portion being located in said second recess and secured therein by deformation of said ear means, the other end portion of said locking member being movably positioned in said first recess and forming locking'prong means which extends through said transverse slot and into said centre channel, a pull tab having a slot adjacent one end thereof, the portion of said pull tab between said slot and said one end thereof being positioned within saidU-shaped portion of said locking member, the distance between said pull tab slot and said one end of said pull tab being greater than the perpendicular distance between the outer member of said U-shaped portion and said outer body member, such that when said pull tab is positioned to lie adjacent said slider body said locking prong means will extend into said centre channel and'when said pull tab is positioned perpendicular to said slider body said locking prong means will be withdrawn from said centre channel.

2. A locking slider as set forth in claim 1 including a third recess in said outer body member, said third recess extending from the transverse edge of said second recess remote form said first recess, said third recess being deeper than said second recess, the outer end of said first mentioned locking member end portion extending into said third recess and terminating below the outer surface of said outer body member.

3. A locking slider as set forth in claim 1 including a stop ear extending from the transverse edge of said first recess remote from said second recess, said stop ear extending into said transverse slot and providing an obstruction to prevent said locking prong means from being pulled out of said slot by use of excessive force on said pull tab.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,967,137 7/1934 Sundback 24205.14 2,322,826 6/ 1943 Carlile 24205.14 2,913,795 11/1959 Brown 24205.14 3,038,226 6/1962 Kedzierski 24205.14 3,099,059 7/1963 Huelster 24205.14

FOREIGN PATENTS 590,076 1/1960 Canada.

BERNARD A. GELAK, Primary Examiner. 

1. A LOCKING SLIDER FOR SLIDE FASTENERS INCLUDING A SLIDER BODY COMPRISING OUTER AND INNER BODY MEMBERS POSITIONED IN SPACED RELATION AND CONNECTED AT ONE END BY A NECK PORTION TO PROVIDE A SUBSTANTIALLY Y-SHAPED CHANNEL THEREBETWEEN, A FIRST RECTANGULAR RECESS IN SAID OUTER BODY MEMBER OVER THE CENTRE CHANNEL OF SAID Y-SHAPED CHANNEL, A TRANSVERSE SLOT EXTENDING FROM SAID FIRST RECESS THROUGH SAID OUTER BODY MEMBER, A SECOND RECTANGULAR RECESS IN SAID OUTER BODY MEMBER OVER SAID NECK PORTION, SAID FIRST AND SECOND RECESSES BEING SUBSTANTIALLY IN AXIAL ALIGNMENT, EAR MEANS EXTENDING OUTWARDLY FROM SAID OUTER BODY MEMBER ON EACH LONGITUDINAL SIDE OF SAID SECOND RECESS, AN UNPERFORATED LONGITUDINAL LOCKING MEMBER OF FLAT SPRING STRIP, SAID LOCKING MEMBER HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY U-SHAPED PORTION EXTENDING OUTWARDLY THEREFROM AND INTERMEDIATE THE LENGTH THEREOF, THE END PORTION OF SAID LOCKING MEMBER ON ONE SIDE OF SAID U-SHAPED PORTION BEING LOCATED IN SAID SECOND RECESS AND SECURED THEREIN BY DEFORMATION OF SAID EAR MEANS, THE OTHER END PORTION OF SAID LOCKING MEMBER BEING MOVABLY POSITIONED SAID FIRST RECESS AND FORMING LOCKING PRONGS MEANS WHICH EXTENDS THROUGH SAID TRANSVERSE SLOT AND INTO SAID CENTRE CHANNEL, A PULL TAB HAVING A SLOT ADJACENT ONE END THEREOF, THE PORTION OF SAID PULL TAB BETWEEN SAID SLOT AND SAID ONE END THEREOF BEING POSITIONED WITHIN SAID U-SHAPED PORTION OF SAID LOCKING MEMBER, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID PULL TAB SLOT AND SAID ONE END OF SAID PULL TAB BEING GREATER THAN THE PERPENDICULAR DISTANCE BETWEEN THE OUTER MEMBER OF SAID U-SHAPED PORTION AND SAID OUTER BODY MEMBER, SUCH THAT WHEN SAID PULL TAB IS POSITIONED TO LIE ADJACENT SAID SLIDER BODY SAID LOCKING PRONG MEANS WILL EXTEND INTO SAID CENTRE CHANNEL AND WHEN SAID PULL TAB IS POSITIONED PERPENDICULAR TO SAID SLIDER BODY SAID LOCKING PRONG MEANS WILL BE WITHDRAWN FROM SAID CENTRE CHANNEL. 